I remember it was a damn cold morning. After a quick brunch at Subway, on our way back to meet our mentor, my friends decided to sneak in one of the tiny streets of the city for a quick smoke. That moment has been impregnated in my mind, and was the symbolic representation of that day, as one of the most inspirational and disheartening ones of my life.
The International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination was taking place on that March 21rt. This time as it has been for many years thanks to the strong local and international community, it was being celebrated and most importantly, it was being advocated. We took the chance to leave our regular student-life settings and go to Seoul as part of a life experience and parallel important, as part of a visual-project that we had in mind (which still half edited). I can not recall what we were talking about at that precise moment, but I can recall what I felt which ended up being extrapolated in this series of captures, and most importantly, which ended up reaffirming the reason why we where there: relatability and humanhood.
After probably have discussed our modus-operandi as beginners in documentary filmmaking, we headed to the first spot, Seoul station and then to the epicenter of the march, which was few blocks further. It was there, were we got to witness the rare dichotomy of the society's understanding and embracement of these two words: relatability and humanhood. In one side of the plaza, there was an intense concentration of so many colors and bright energy that could have be seen and felt from kilometers away. As a juxtaposition to that atmosphere, we came to witness the squalid energy of few people on the other side of the plaza screaming: "they take our jobs", "go back to your country". I have never perceived so much darkness in a bright day.
The conglomeration of people in these two sides was the same (theoretically); it was about humanhood and relatability. But it was clear that each side interpreted these two delicate and fundamental aspects in human existence very differently. Therefore, it seemed to me, that made them fight for different battles. One embraced the volatile of human existence, took the constant hinder that context represents in a human's life, and went to the streets to make sure that people remember to recognize their role in society and in other's life as well; to fight racial-paradigm barriers and its inherent consequences. On the other hand, the other embraced the double edged swords of self-interest and ignorance. Their fight was intrinsically emphasizing and defending the power role that context plays in one's life (in the negative connotation). I found myself with a profound hope when I saw those vast majority of people who regardless of their individual contexts, were there to emphasize that we are all one kind, it was so inspirational. Nevertheless, I found myself also disheartened to witness the agency of those few people to go against the ideals that would make our societies more cohesive, and the world a better place for the future generations yet to come.
In that sense, the compendium of these photos, was inspired on this dichotomy, it was inspired on what the March 21st means to me. These photos aimed to express that the volatile and variant of context, in one's life, should evoke relatability, empathy and a sense of reality refraction to the "spectator"; not apathy, not distant depiction, neither repulsiveness.
The combination of the photos of my friends while smoking together, their individual portrayals looking at me as a invitation, and my feet in front of half used disposed cigarettes, represent the relation of the distant observant that witness, understands, relate and then, becomes part of that reality; even if as an spectator. Furthermore, the contrasting body language that each of them show, whilst sharing that relaxation and warming-up ritual of smoking, takes place as a symbolism of uniqueness and differences in each particular, which are fundamental pillars for cohesion in a society, because to create such an atmosphere, it is essential for one to relate to the other's reality, is to embrace uniqueness and redefine contextual difference. Is to break paradigms.
For very absurd and even unrelated that might sound and seem, those cigarettes reaffirmed to me that even tough context does play a huge role in defining our lives in different ways, it does not necessarily play a role in the way we can relay to other's contexts/life situations as ours; same feeling that let one to be irradiated and included in that reality, as part of the humanhood that indeed we are all part of.
Comments